Early '65 GT350s Shipped With 64 1/2 Mustang Parts

055 has the 5 bolt block with Cobra bellhousing and Avaid oil pan!!!..thus the 5 bolt block was the only Ford installed item in this list!! My fastback has the 5 bolt block also..built around the same date while my coupe has the 6 bolt!! 6 months later build!!

 

Does your engine have the VIN stamped on the block? I ask because I understood that by 12/64 when your car was delivered to SAI, Ford had moved to six bolt blocks. Even 289 Cobras began using six bolts after August '64. There was a batch of five bolt 'service engines' produced in 1965. But unlikly that Ford used these in a production car.

Perhaps some others can comment on this.

The Avaid(R) pan would have been an aftermarket installation I believe. SAI produced their own pan until about 1966 when Avaid(R) was used.

 

Motor is stamped with the Ford VIN... the Avaid pan is the one without the oil line fitting... also was delivered to Archway Ford Baltimore Md in Jan 65.. Have the info for TWA flight delivering the car..ha only cost $300.. to air mail a car from LAX to Baltimore.. special wheels.. that being 15 x 6 magnesium TTO... still looking for a pair to replace those two that were damaged!! Odd ball car but I have a lot of history on this car!!! unique!!

 

Suggest that you include Mustangs built at the same plant, same time to vastly increase your sample pool, especially considering the limited number of unrestored Shelby's in this time period. Maybe only 3-4 of these cars are still currently unrestored or had only limited changes since new.

Of course you could IMHO also look at later original cars and draw a conclusion from those samples if they also had some early "64 1/2" features.
Just another possibility

And unfortunately it is not plant specific - changes would have taken placed differently at different plants for many of the items. When considering color specific interior parts change over dates were likely different since they may have run out quicker or later for more popular colors (since they likely ordered greater volume than less popular color). Lots of variables IMHO

 

Interesting - what is the casting date on that 5 bolt engine. Looked at a K code block installed in a San Jose car last week - 6 bolt , cast in July 64

 

Per Mr. Mannel,
"The transition date between 5-bolt and 6-bolt Mustang 289 V8s was stated in Ford master parts catalogs as August 17, 1964, depending on the catalog or part of the catalog. Examination of actual Mustang serial numbers by Jim Smart (In search of Mustangs) places the actual date as August 3, 1964. As for 289 HiPo engines, a 6-bolt HiPo with assembly date of August 4, 1964, has been found in a 1965 Mustang with an August 10, 1964 build date. So the August 3, 1964, date appears good for all versions of the 289. In this book, Mustangs with 1964 engines (5-bolt) are considered 1964 or 1964 1/2 Mustangs"

 

I know 032 had early style carpet. Don't remember any other details though!

Larry